Aircraft tubing ratchet wrench



Jul 19, 1949. G, MacL, GUTWSKI 2,476,369

AIRCRAFT TUBING RATCHET WRENCH I Filed Oct. 24, 1947 j? 14 INVENTOR. GER/11 0 M GU ran 5M Patented July 19, H345? um TED s TATES earn-N T oFricE 2,476,369 -=macanr r 'r-Unme RATCHET weapon Gerald MacLe ndon Gutowski, Baltimore, Md. Amalie-anewoetoberai, 1947, sauna-78mm vision of'a ratchet wranchhaving pivotedjaws,

one of which is spring-pressed'to provide for automatic adjustment of the wrench-ftoa-nut.

A further obj ect of the I invention is to provide a ratchet wrench having-opposed pivotal jaws mounted for operationbn a 'single'pivot so posi tioned as to promote "easy operation of the wrench, and increase the mechanical advantage of the same, while, at the same'timereducingto a minimum the strain on the'pi'vot.

A still further object of the invention is t'oproi vide a wrench of "the type referred to ofsimpl'e design and rugged construction, having fewparts and capable of being readily taken apart for purposes of replacement -and repair. 7

The above and other objectsandadv'ant'ag'es of the invention will beappa'r'ent fro-in't'he following description, constituting aspecification of the same, when taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, wherein: p I

Figure 1 is a side elevational view-6r the wrench showing the relative positions oftheparts of the same when applied to a nut. v

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the wrench. V k

Figure 3 is aside elevational view of the same, partly in'section, taken along the line il-#3 of Figure 2, lo'okingin the direction indicated'by the arrows, and showing the internal arrangement of the parts.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary rear view of the wrench.

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of the same taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 3, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows,

Referring to the drawings in greater detail, I indicates the handle of the wrench, which, in the present instance, is of circular cross-section, but which may be of any other convenient shape.

The handle is formed with an enlarged head por- *2 tion '2 at one end, which-serves a's-a housing and support for the movable jaws 4 and 5.

The head portion 12 is open -at its front, rear and outer=end, "arrdaispreferably of a'widthnot exceeding that ofthe handle,' so that the wrenh has a more or-lessflatshape for introduction-into places where theiavailable. spa'ce is limited. The sides of 1 the head portion are 3 joined across the front' by a bridge 1,which extends outwardly-beyond the end of the housing to-forman abutment 8 for :engagementwith aiproje'ction 011 9 formed on the jaw-5.

The movable jaw his 0f a'width to' fit' snugly within the head portion "-2, and 1 is formed with spaced-apart extensions "H and 12, which are perforated ito rec'eive a2pivot pin 1 I 4, and t liich receive between them the perforated end porn-en lfi-of-the opposing pivoted 'jaw '5. The j'aw-4 has a curved outerlportion 5 H3 provided with notches ii for engagement with the corners of a nut. The lower 'e'nd'of the jaw l 'is formedwith an extension l 8 having a cam lilie portion l'9 -=adapted to engageialleaf spring 2 l which is secured to the han'dle by a'screw Z2.

Thejaw 5 is also somewhat curved,{and*is providedwithinotches i23 identical with the notches H of the 1 jaw 4,:and serving the sam purpes iItwi1l be notd that the's-prin --2l" is bentto permit :the zfr'ee end of the sameo extend into the head'po'rtiomzto engagethe' portion' l9 of the jaw-4, so that' the freeend of th'e'spring remains at Hall times within the ihousirig, thus preventing damage to :the :spring during use 6f the wrench.

. Aswill be=apparent from an -in'spec'tion oftlie drawings, the pin 1M -etends -1'atera1ly'through the head po'rtion zarid pivotallysupports both'of the movable .j'aws. By this censtru'ction it "is only necessary to remove the -sirigle pin inorder to compl etely disas's'emble the partso'f'the' wrench for: purposes ofzre'pair or replacement.

:In using the invention as described above, a nut is inserted betwen the iij aws' in engagement with the notches l1 and 23, the jaw 4 being moved outwardly against the pressure of the spring 2!. When the'nut has been inserted as just described, the spring 2! maintains the jaw in firm contact with the nut, and presses the same into engagement with the jaw 5, so that the extension 9 is brought into contact with the abutment 8 on the head portion 2. The nut may then be applied in the usual manner by turning the wrench with the handle I.

As seen in Figure 1 of the drawings, the jaw 4 is longer than the jaw 5, and the pivot point of the jaws is to the left of the center of the nut, indicated in dotted lines. With the parts positioned as indicated, the relation of the pivot pin to the jaws is such that, upon a clockwise movement of the handle, the jaw engages the abutment 8 and the law 4 moves in a direction to close the jaws firmly about the nut to tighten the same.

On the other hand, a movement of the handle in a counter-clockwise direction from the position indicated in Figure 1 causes the jaw 4 to be moved in a direction to open the jaws against the pressure of the spring 2|, thus releasing the nut.

When it is desired to loosen the nut, it is only necessary to turn the wrench over so that the gripping action described becomes eifective on a counter-clockwise movement of the handle.

By reason of the notches I! and 23, and the movability of the jaws, a nut may be readily inserted in the wrench, the jaws 4 and 5 automatically adjusting themselves to grasp the nut.

It will be noted that the pivot pin I4 is located close to the opposed gripping portions of the pivoted jaws, and passes approximately through the longitudinal axis of the wrench, which results in obtainin a maximum of mechanical advantage with a minimum of strain on the parts.

It will thus be seen that the invention as above described provides a wrench which is eflicient in operation, and is capable of use with a wide range of different types of fittings.

While the invention has been described in connection with a particular embodiment of the same, it will be understood that many changes can be made in the arrangement and proportions of the various parts within the skill of the mechanic, without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus clearly shown and described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A wrench, comprising a handle, laterally spaced extensions secured to the handle near one end of the same and having aligned apertures, a transverse rib connecting the spaced extensions near one side of the handle, the rib extending longitudinally forwardly of the aligned apertures and constitutin a top, the rib being spaced longitudinally forwardly of the adjacent end of the handle for forming a transverse passage between the end of the handle and rib and between the longitudinal extensions, a pin mounted within the aligned apertures and extending between the spaced extensions and spaced laterally inwardly of the rib, a first jaw pivotally mounted upon the pin between the spaced extensions and extending longitudinally forwardly of the spaced extensions and having a part to engage the stop, the first jaw being swingable laterally and havin an inner nut gripping side, a second jaw pivotally mounted upon the pin between the spaced extensions and having a forward curved extension projecting longitudinally forwardly of the free end of the first jaw and having an inner nut gripping side, the nut gripping sides of the first and second jaws being disposed longitudinally forwardly of the spaced extensions, the second jaw including a longitudinall rearwardly projecting arm extending rearwardly of the rib and pin and disposed in the transverse passage, and a leaf spring secured to the side of the handle and having a part projecting into the transverse passage and contacting the rearwardly projectin arm of the second jaw, the spring serving to bias the forward end of the second jaw toward the first jaw.

2. A wrench, comprising a handle, laterally spaced plates secured to one end of the handle and having their outer faces substantially flush with the sides of the handle for forming a slender construction, the plates extending longitudinally forwardly of the adjacent end of the handle and being provided near their forward ends with aligned transverse apertures, the apertures being disposed substantially at the transverse center of the handle, a transverse rib connecting the spaced plates and being spaced forwardly of the forward end of the handle, the rib extending forwardly of the spaced plates to form a stop and bein spaced laterally outwardly of the aligned apertures, a transverse pin mounted witlnn the aligned apertures and extending between the spaced plates, a first generally longitudinal jaw pivotally mounted upon the pin between the spaced plates and extending forwardly of the plates and having a lateral shoulder near its forward end to contact the stop, the inner side of the first jaw being notched to form a nut gripping face, a companion jaw pivotally mounted upon the pin between the spaced plates and disposed laterally opposite the first jaw and swingable toward and away from the first jaw, the companion jaw having its inner side notched to form a companion nut gripping face, the nut gripping faces of the jaws being disposed forwardly of the spaced plates, a rear longitudinal extension carried by the companion jaw and extending rearwardly of the rib and into said passage, and a resilient element connected with the handle and disposed within the passage and contacting the rear longitudinal extension, the resilient element serving to urge the companion jaw toward the first jaw.

GERALD MACLENDON GUTOWSKI.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the 

